Where to eat in Rome near the monuments

If you're sightseeing in Rome, make sure you know where the good wine, gelato and pizza are first!

History, archeology, art, food and wine — Rome is generous with its variegated goods. The only real risk is overkill. The wise thing is to alternate sightseeing with food breaks.

But where to pause the cultural spree with some well-chosen snack nosh? Here's my shortlist of favorite places for smart (and tasty) intervals, arranged by sightseeing neighborhoods.


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Wine tasting at VinoRoma

VinoRoma, or the sommeliers you'll love (and understand).

There's always a feeling of being underqualified when attending a wine tasting. I personally always fear I'll say the wrong thing, suggest the wrong pairing... I'm uncomfortable my instinctive approach towards wine will clash with the wine knowledge of sommeliers teaching and certified experts attending.

But on the other hand, I love wine. And I do try to learn things about it, and mostly how some wines can exalt the flavor of certain foods.

The best way to do this in Rome, in the care of knowledgeable wine stewards, is to head over to Vino Roma, a fabulous wine studio in the Monti neighborhood where you can learn everything about Italian wines at various types of guided tastings and seminars.

In the comfortable setting of a large communal space, under a vaulted brick ceiling, with the benefits of the on-site thousand year old cellar, and seated at a table laden with goodies and bottles, you can follow one of many interesting wine events held in English (German, Japanese, Italian and Turkish are available upon special request).

Tastings at Vino Roma are designed to inform and entertain everyone, guests will learn something new no matter what their level of wine knowledge is. The folks at Vino Roma don't believe in wine-snobbery, so any wine tasting panic is not an issue here, since no question is ever laughed at.

There are very popular wine tasting events going on at Vino Roma, my favorite ones are the ones that involve lots of food too! I recently attended a Wine & Cheese Lunch, and it turned out to be so much more than I expected. It was a wonderful chance to chat comfortably at the table with interesting fellow guests, sipping wine, nibbling great bread, cheese and salumi, and learning about wine regions, grapes and winemaking with the great team of wine lovers that work there.

If you're traveling to Rome, I suggest you absolutely book a tasting with Hande, Maurizio, Irene or Theo. They will be happy to pour a little happiness in your glass. It will be one of the highlights of your stay in the Eternal City.

Vino Roma

Via in Selci 84/G (minutes away from the Colosseum or the Termini central station; right by the Cavour Metro stop on blue line B)